(US4935035-A)      Prodn. of dried wood chips from broad leaved and coniferous trees comprises; (a) forming green wood chips and mixing them with a comminuted, fermentable mass obtd. from bark and leaves of broad leaved trees, leaves of leaved plants and/or grass, (b) compacting the mixt. in a confined space and fermenting the mixt. while the space is made air tight with heat, water vapour and gases being generated by the fermentation and (c) allowing the heat of fermentation to dry the compacted mixt. while wenting the water vapour and gases.    The amt. of green plant material in the mixt. is less than 15 wt.% and its moisture content is up to 70 wt.%. The confined space is heat insulated and provided with a shaft penetrating the compacted mixt. for the venting of water vapour and gases.    ADVANTAGE -   Satisfactorily dried wood chips are obtd. without intermediate storage and virtually without use of extraneous energy. @(6pp)@    (EP316294-B)      A method of producing dried coarse chips from the timber of deciduous and/or coniferous trees, more particularly from brushwood and waste timber or timber from timber plantations, in which method the wood is chopped into chips and is dried by heating and discharge of the water vapour, characterised in that the timber is chopped into the chips in the green state with a moisture content of up to 60% by weight, is mixed with a fermentable and likewise comminuted green substance consisting of the bark and the foliage of deciduous trees, the leaves of foliage plants, grass or mixtures thereof, the proportion of the green substance being kept below 15% by weight, while the total moisture content of the mixture consisting of the coarse chips and the green substance may be up to more than 70% by weight but the proportion of green substance is adjusted according to the moisture content of the coarse chips, and in that this mixture is brought to fermentation, with pressing to form a block, in a chamber (1,21) which is hermetically sealed at least at the sides and at the bottom, and is dried using the resulting fermentation heat, the temperature being prevented from rising about about 45 deg.C and the water vapour and gases evolved being discharged.    (DE3869911-G)      This is a method for producing dried wood chips from the wood of leafy and/or coniferous trees. The wood, in the green condition, is chopped into chips and mixed with a fermentable broken-up green mass consisting of bark, foliage, leaves of plants, grass, or mixtures of these. The mixture is compressed in a chamber that is airtight at least at the sides and below, brought to fermentation, and dried by the fermentation heat, the steam and gases being led away. Several variants of the method are claimed.    USE/ADVANTAGE -   Wood chips are being increasingly used for heating purposes. Their calorific value depends mainly on their dryness, and excessive moisture must also be avoided for environmental reasons. This production method is labour-saving, has no intermediate storage problem, and produces, with minimum energy from external sources, wood chips that are satisfactorily dried.    (SU1801089-A3)      This is a method for producing dried wood chips from the wood of leafy and/or coniferous trees. The wood, in the green condition, is chopped into chips and mixed with a fermentable broken-up green mass consisting of bark, foliage, leaves of plants, grass, or mixtures of these. The mixture is compressed in a chamber that is airtight at least at the sides and below, brought to fermentation, and dried by the fermentation heat, the steam and gases being led away. Several variants of the method are claimed.    USE/ADVANTAGE -   Wood chips are being increasingly used for heating purposes. Their calorific value depends mainly on their dryness, and excessive moisture must also be avoided for environmental reasons. This production method is labour-saving, has no intermediate storage problem, and produces, with minimum energy from external sources, wood chips that are satisfactorily dried.